Tonight's Dinner: Pecan-crusted Chicken Thighs

Jennifer is a stay-at-home mom with a passion for writing, vintage clothes, old movies and cooking, especially dinners and desserts. Jennifer loves writing so much that whenever she has a spare moment, she spends it writing fiction or ad...

Cinnamon & Pecans Give Chicken Fall Flavor

Pecans, cinnamon and a few extra spices turn plain old chicken thighs into a wonderful dinner full of fall flavor.

Boneless, skinless chicken breasts are one of the standard choices when cooking chicken. They're easy and they're low in fat and cholesterol. But what about the chicken thigh? You can get it boneless and it tends to be a much more flavorful cut of meat. Sure it's a fattier piece of meat, but that fat is what gives it more flavor. And because the thigh is smaller there are usually more in each package. So, you could make one recipe tonight and another chicken thigh recipe later in the week.

Take these pecan-crusted chicken thighs for instance. They could be delicious as a breast, but the dark meat, coupled with the trimmed fat, make them that much heartier. That and the cinnamon. Who knew adding just a little cinnamon, some sugar and Old Bay spice would create a meal that you could not only serve your family, but will easily wow guests at your next dinner party?

Pecan-crusted Chicken Thighs

Ingredients

1 egg

1/4 cup milk

1/2 cup flour

2 teaspoons Old Bay spice

1-1/2 tablespoons cinnamon

1 cup chopped pecans

pinch of sugar

seasoned salt and pepper to taste

4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, pounded to 1/2 inch thickness

2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions

Whisk together the eggs and milk in a small bowl and set aside.

In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, Old Bay, cinnamon, pecans, sugar, salt and pepper.

Take each pounded thigh and dip in the egg mixture. Then dip in the pecan mixture and press to adhere.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place two thighs in skillet and cook until golden and chicken is cooked all the way through, about five minutes per side. Place on paper towel to drain and serve with rice pilaf or tabouli salad.